If anyone has wondered what most of the South Korean population would do if North Korea attacks, this poll gives some indication:
Four out of 10 Seoul residents would simply flee to another country if another war breaks out on the Korean peninsula, a poll suggests. Also, more than 60 percent of Seoul residents said they have no idea what the instructions are in the event of a war.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government surveyed 3,039 residents earlier this month and found that 36.2 percent would escape to a safer place, while 5.6 percent said they would leave Korea. Only 11.6 percent said they want to take up arms to defend the country, and the remainder would be willing to give the military some auxiliary support [Chosun Ilbo]
You can read more at the link.
The US Ambassador to Korea says that is premature to begin official talks in regards to deploying THAAD to Korea:
The top U.S. envoy to South Korea said it would be premature for Seoul and Washington to publicly discuss the possible deployment of a new U.S. anti-missile defense system in South Korea, an opposition party spokesman said Monday.
Ambassador Mark Lippert said that no formal negotiations took place between the two allies over the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense battery, though internal discussions are under way in the U.S., said Kim Yung-rok, a spokesman for the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy.
Lippert made the comment through an interpreter in a meeting with Moon Jae-in, head of the main opposition party at the party headquarters.
Lippert defended the missile-defense system, citing what he described as serious threats posed by North Korea’s missile and nuclear programs. [Yonhap]
You can read the rest at the link.
This photo, provided by Dewey McLean, a U.S. veteran of the 1950-53 Korean War and currently a geology professor emeritus at Virginia Tech and taken during the war, shows people walking on a street in downtown Seoul. McLean served as a corporal for a transport unit of the U.S. 8th Army when he was stationed here from 1952-53. (Yonhap)
The findings of bullying in the military is not surprising, but criticizing South Korea for limiting the political activity in the classrooms by their teachers? Does the State Department believe that South Korean teachers should have the right to teach pro-North Korean and anti-US propaganda to their students?:
An annual human rights report released on June 25 by the US State Department cited violence in the military and restrictions on political involvement by government employees and teachers as problem areas for South Korea. The department’s Human Rights Report for South Korea rated it as a country that generally respects human rights, but included the two new areas in addition to previous concerns about the National Security Law. “The primary human rights problems reported were government interpretation of the National Security Law, libel laws, and other laws to limit freedom of speech and expression and restrict access to the internet; the continued jailing of conscientious objectors to military service; and bullying and hazing [of new recruits] in the military,” the executive summary read. The mention of bullying and hazing in the military appears to be a reference to incidences such as the death of a private first class surnamed Yun in Apr. 2014.
“During the first half of the year, the Ministry of National Defense reported 37 suicides among military personnel, generally attributed to bullying, hazing, or inability to adjust to military life,” the report said. In regard to punishment in libel cases, the report mentioned the indictment of former New Politics Alliance for Democracy floor leader Park Jie-won after allegations that President Park Geun-hye used a “non-official system” to choose appointees. In terms of press freedoms, the report mentions the indictment of the Japanese newspaper Sankei Shimbun’s Seoul bureau chief for defamation over allegations about President Park’s whereabouts during the Apr. 2014 Sewol ferry sinking. While the State Department’s 2013 report had only mentioned restrictions on labor rights and interference with striking rights as problem areas, the latest report notes that “[r]estrictions on workers’ rights, including freedom of association and assembly and limitations on political engagement of public servants and teachers, were also problematic.” [Hankyoreh]
You can read the rest at the link.
According to the KoreAm Journal they are hoping that the recent Supreme Court ruling legalizing gay marriage across the US will help change the opinions that supposedly many in the Korean-American community have about gays:
As much as Friday’s ruling resonated around the country, some advocacy groups are urging greater acceptance within the greater Korean American community of LGBTQ individuals—an issue touched on by KoreAm in this June 2013 feature story about the community’s attitudes towards same-sex marriage.
“We’re thrilled by the national progress on LGBTQ equality, but deeply disappointed by the hostility we and our families continue to face in Korean American communities,” The Dari Project, an LGBTQ Korean American organization based in New York City, said in a statement. “There’s no way to sugarcoat it: homophobia and transphobia are still incredibly serious problems in Korean American communities and cause very real harm to LGBTQ Korean Americans.
“We urge Korean American allies to not be silent when they witness homophobia and transphobia in Korean American communities and to use today’s court decision to start conversations in their families, churches and other Korean American community spaces that will help Korean American communities recognize the humanity of LGBTQ people just as the Supreme Court did today,” added the organization. [KoreAm Journal]
You can read more at the link, but considering how churches are such an integral part of many Korean-American communities it may take a while for opinions to change, but I think they eventually will.
This file photo, taken during the 1950-53 Korean War and obtained on June 23, 2015, from the Beijing-based International Committee of the Red Cross Regional Delegation for East Asia, shows North Korean prisoners of war kneeling down during interrogation. This and other rare photos, which Red Cross officials and U.S. soldiers took during the three-year conflict, give a glimpse at how the inter-Korean war drove people into terrible situations, on the occasion of the 65th anniversary of the start of the war, which falls on June 25. (Yonhap)
To much fanfare in North Korea, Kim Jong-un has opened Pyongyang’s new international airport:
North Korea has finished building an international airport terminal, state media reported Thursday, and photos show leader Kim Jong Un inspecting rather swanky amenities that include a jewelry store, a pharmacy and a coffee bar with — is that a chocolate fountain?
It was unclear what international assistance impoverished North Korea received for constructing the two-story terminal, or how much it cost. A 30-photo slide show published by the state-run Korean Central News Agency showed Kim touring the terminal with his wife and a group of about a dozen people. Numerous photos showed the entourage in various states of laughter.
The facility, which also has a new control tower, will open July 1, the agency said. It replaces a terminal that dated to the 1950s and may be part of efforts by Kim to increase the country’s appeal to tourists and earn foreign currency [LA Times]
You can read the rest at the link.
Probably the most interesting thing about this airport is not where the money came from, but the fact he had its architect executed last year as part of one of his purges to consolidate power.
